Isabel Capuano was on a airline flight to Florida when she glanced out the window and observed a large piece of the airplane fly off.Initially , it looked like a piece of an engine cover lifting up . Then , "the whole part merely tore off and flew into the atmosphere," she told CNN affiliate WLS in Chicago . The engine was uncovered . "I really wanted to get down of it instantly ."
The Spirit Airlines flight away from O'Hare airport terminal , en route to Fort Lauderdale Saturday morning , made an unexpected emergency arriving back at O'Hare .
"Shortly after takeoff , a passenger noticed an engine cowling on the right side had left the aircraft ," said Elizabeth Cory , spokeswoman for the Federal Aviation Administration .
"We are actively looking into to establish the information and facts of how it happened and the cause ," Spirit Airlines spokeswoman Misty Pinson said . "We are already examining the aircraft and the right engine cowlings which have been retrieved on airport property ."
Travellers were reserved on some other airplanes or provided rebates .
